May 25, 2011

Illinois sex ed teachers could be required to teach contraceptive use

SPRINGFIELD ---Sex education instructors would be required to teach the use of contraceptives under a measure that barely passed the Illinois Senate today.

Currently, sex ed teachers are only required to teach students abstinence to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. The legislation would require any sex education class offered between grades 6 and 12 to teach students about both abstinence and contraceptives.

The bill would not force schools that currently do not teach sex education to do so. It also includes a provision that would allow parents and guardians to review course materials ahead of time to determine whether they would want their child to take the class.

Sen. Dan Duffy, R-Lake Barrington, argued that teaching students anything more than abstinence would encourage them to engage in sex. He pointed to California's comprehensive sex education policy, which requires students to learn about contraceptives, and said students there have a higher pregnancy rate than their Illinois counterparts.

"Why do you want to duplicate a failed policy?" Duffy asked. "This policy would do the opposite of what we want -- increase pregnancies and increase the frequency of STDs."

Sponsoring Sen. Heather Steans countered that half of high school students already engage in sex and only teaching abstinence won't change that. But she said teaching students about contraceptives could reduce the number of chlamydia and gonorrhea cases in teen.

"Clearly they're not getting all the information they need to make a wise decision," said Steans, D-Chicago.

The legislation passed the Senate 30-28, the bare minimum needed to move on for consideration in the House.

All 50 aldermen on the Chicago City Council had to file paperwork earlier this year detailing their outside income and gifts. The Tribune took that ethics paperwork and posted the information here for you to see. You can search by ward number or alderman's last name.

The Cook County Assessor's office has put together lists of projected median property tax bills for all suburban towns and city neighborhoods. We've posted them for you to get a look at who's paying more and who's paying less.

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